Shattered Peace
by InnerShadow
Summary: Sequel to Broken Oblivion but can stand alone. Max wakes up, trapped in a beautiful paradise with her handsome savior. But when the Flock return, can Max forgive and forget and make the ultimate choice? DISCONTINUED
1. Then and Now

_A/N: So, this has been a long time coming. If you haven't read the prequel, Broken Oblivion, you may not get some of the things in this. It's a short story, I recommend you do. So, anyway, I have some good ideas for this. Tehehehe. Warning though, I will be explaining the FIggy because it was only there for a reason. Fang and Iggy are NOT gay. _

**Disclaimer: If I owned Max Ride, would I be here? Honestly people. **

I stretched, rolling over in the silky softness, luxuriating in the feel of the warm blankets around me. The down pillows enveloped my head as I wiped the last traces of sleep from the corners of my eyes. I blinked, and blearily opened them to see a full cream canopy above me and a comforter printed with roses on a creamy background. I sat up, immediately entranced with the beauty of the room. I knew this had to be Heaven and that I had succeeded in my terrible purpose, for none of the Flock would ever peg me as a secret girly girl.

I wandered over to the big bay window, curling up in a window seat that matched the bed. The walls were papered with the same cream and roses print as the comforter and there was a large mahogany vanity and wardrobe as well as a desk and side table. I smiled with delight as I took in my old fashioned bedroom. Then I turned to the window and gasped.

On the ground level there was a marble terrace that had a huge fountain in the center. The white fence bordering it was covered in climbing roses, and the grounds were gently sloping away from the steps that led up to it. There were gardens, some of which I could see were filled to bursting with flowers and others obscured by walls, bushes, and trees. I could see a lake in the distance, and a road that must have led off of the manor's grounds.

It was as I took all this in that I heard the door open and whipped round, and there, leaning against the doorframe was the most handsome boy I had ever seen – apart from Fang, but thinking about him just brought me pain. He was tall and thin, well cut with black hair and piercing blue eyes. He was smiling at me, and he straightened up and opened his arms invitingly. I had no choice but give in to the wild urge to run to him, and cling to him greedily, wishing that he would be mine in reality. Of course, this was Heaven, so I suppose he is mine already.

After gathering me in his arms, he geld me close, pressing his lips into my hair and murmuring, "Oh, Max, I thought we were going to lose you. I'm so glad you're alright."

The truth hit me in a flash. I was _still alive_. I pulled away, shock written across my features. "What do you mean, you thought I was going to die? I'm still alive?" This last question culminated in a plaintive wail. I flailed at him with my fists as tears of anger and disappointment clouded my eyes. Why couldn't I just die? Why? Was that so hard to ask? I mean, I was tired of life on the run. I wanted to just _die _already and move on and live the life of a normal girl with a normal life and have Fang to love me and care for me and have parents an- "Max!"

His voice startled me out of my reverie and I realized I was hyperventilating and sobbing and my nose was running all at the same time. He reached out with a soft white hankie to gently wipe the tears from my eyes, and I smiled at him sadly. 'Well,' I thought, 'this works too.'

So, in this way, a year passed. I never felt the need to leave our country home as the days dragged by. I cultivated my own garden and oversaw the others. I read and embroidered and hunted to pass the time when Tristan would pass beyond the wall. Inside the wall, we lived and dressed as though still in the past. It was the grandeur of the 1800's relived, as Tristan confided, and it had always been his dream. The institution that had made him my Voice had provided him with this as a reward.

I saw no reason to complain as I personally enjoyed it. I was never bored or lacking and was never alone when I needed company. I had Tristan and sometimes his younger sister Lily. In that year I fell head over heels in love with Tristan. He took care of me in a way I had never been taken care of and asked for little in return.

We laughed together, danced together and fell asleep in each other's arms. He knew much about me from his time as my Voice, but we still had fun getting to really know each other. We became so close that we were soon finishing each other's sentences and able to predict each other's actions. We knew each other's deepest longings, and he seemed to accept my hopeless pining for Fang as unavoidable. I, in turn, accepted his prolonged absences without question. It was as my seventeenth birthday rolled around though that things came crashing down.

Tristan had been promising for weeks to get me something truly special, something I could keep as mine or share with Lily and him. Something I had been missing for a very long time. I, of course, shooed him off, protesting that with him here I never missed anything. He would just smile secretly and disappear into his study. Tristan's study was the one place I never went. I had been inside it, sure, but never when he was not around. For the first time since I had been brought to my new home, I began to feel the temptation to find out what was inside. But, of course, I would never enter so long as he did not want me to. No matter what.

Fang's POV, 1 year ago (the day Max disappeared)

"MAAAAAAX!!!!!" "Max!" "Maximum!!!"

We ran frantically through the woods, searching and calling. We were all worried, and had been since Angel had come back to the house, took one look around her and said, "Max needs us. Quick, before she manages what she failed at the beach!"

At that I was out the door, for I wasn't going to let anything happen to my Max. I loved her too much for that. We tore through the trees, following Total, who had picked up the scent. We finally came to a magnificent clearing. A spring was gurgling, wildflowers were swaying, and the trees bordered the meadow with a solid stance. It was a beautiful place, but I shall forever remember it as a place of doom. I was the one who found the knife. And the blood.

I could see the indent in the grass where her body had lain, could see where her blood had spilled. It stained the lilies surrounding it a dark red, and they appeared as though poppies. I shouted to Iggy to keep the kids away, even though they thought themselves adults. They weren't though. Nudge was but 13, Gazzy a young 10, and Angel, the one among them who thought herself most mature, 8. They were too young. _I _was too young to see this. For the briefest of moments I wanted to join my sweet, dear, lovely max wherever she was. But I had a responsibility to the Flock and I knew it even if she didn't. So, with sorrow and grief written on my weary face, I turned back to the others and said, "There's nothing we can do now. Let's go home."

Max would be 17 in two weeks. She had been gone from us for nearly a year. You could see in the first few weeks of her absence how the kids missed her. I didn't blame them. I felt the same, but worse. Whereas they had lost a mother, I had lost the love of my life. Even Iggy, who's always understood me, could not understand. He had lost his sister; his love was still with us. Knowing Nudge, she probably always would be. They were soon over her though. It was almost shocking, but by then I was too far gone to care.

I remember, once, how they had come to me. They had told me to cheer up, it wasn't the end of the world, that I would soon fall in love again. That was the one and only time I ever lost control of my self in front of the Flock. I had turned on them, shouting, "No, you stupid little idiots, it is the end of the world! There is no world for me without her, do you here me? NO WORLD FOR ME!!! Not without her, my sweet, dear, kind, caring, beautiful, temperamental, worrisome, loving little…"

My words had trailed off as the tears had flowed down my cheeks. I was not ashamed though. I had stopped caring long ago. My life was only now centered around providing for the others.

I really was useless dead weight though. When the attack came I couldn't defend them. I only managed to take out 37 Erasers before I went down. The others, who were hiding in the basement, were soon to follow.

_A/N: Ohhhhhhh, so what's all this about, eh? Why is Max so docile? Why is Fang so lonely if he's supposedly with Iggy? Why is Iggy with Nudge? What's Max's present? What's up with sicko Tristan's 1800's fantasies? Hmmmmmm? What? If you hit the clicky review button and review, I'll tell you faster. C'mon, I need incentive here people!!!_

**Suggestions are welcome, reviews are love. **


	2. Shock of My Life

_A/N: Hey there people, ya miss me? I am so sick right now it isn't even funny. I have food poisoning, I think. I always seem to be getting sick…._

Tristan came up behind me and kissed my neck, winding his arms around my waist. He smiled into my neck when I giggled, pulling me closer to him. He murmured a soft, "Happy Birthday, my love."

I blushed and said, "If anyone asks, I will deny it."

"Why would you do that, my sweet?"

"Because I don't need elaborate presents."

"You know you want them. Now come, it's breakfast time." He caught my hand and pulled me to our lavish dining room. I sat at the head of the long table and he sat at the foot, a new thing as I usually sat beside him at the head. I didn't like the great distance the table put between us. As if sensing my discomfort, Tristan glanced up from the paper and smiled at me. Molly, our maid, came out bearing a large tray covered with candied fruit, bacon, eggs, and cocoa. I licked my lips and dug in as Tristan laughed and said, "After this I'll give you your present, and you can play with it all day. At dinner we'll have cake."

"Aren't you gonna play with me?" I smiled wickedly at him, and he turned the lightest shade of pink. We had never slept together, just in the same bed - if that makes any sense. We want to be married first and he wants me to be at least 18 when we marry. Doesn't mean I haven't dreamed about it though….and let me tell you, those were some _nice_ dreams.

I gobbled down the rest of my breakfast and stood expectantly.

"Alright, I'm ready now."

"In a minute."

"But I'm ready _now_."

"Fine, fine. So much for not wanting any elaborate presents, eh?" He laughingly got up, folding the paper as he did. When he reached me he took my hand and led me out of the dining hall. We made it all the way to the main entrance hall and the foot of the grand marble stairs before he stopped me and put the blindfold on. He wrapped his arms around my waist and nuzzled his face into my wings as he steered me away. I had barely whined once about the amount of stairs we were going down before he said, "Shhhhhh, Max. We're here. Be quiet because we wouldn't want your present disturbed."

"Oh, is it an animal! I've always wanted a puppy!!!"

"Yes, _they_ are animals, but be careful for they are wild and untamable. Hence the cages. But my feeling is that they will respond well to you, my angel. Now open."

I opened my eyes and gasped. The place was a huge almost resort area, with a zoo like cage in the corner. I walked over and bent down to see what new delight was mine, and there I got the greatest shock of my life.

We had been in the stinking cages for 3 days now. I just wanted it all to be over. The terrible waiting, and the false sense of security, that if you can't get out they can't get in, that stole over me at times.

They did not treat us badly. The cage was roomy, and we each had a comfy floor pallet. We were fed three times a day, and there were two bathrooms. And we were all together. The others may not value me now as I am more silent and gruff than before, but I like having them where I can see them. It made me think that if only we stuck together we could pull through this, as we had so much else. It was then I heard the voices.

"Shhhhhh, Max. We're here. Be quiet because we wouldn't want your present disturbed." This was a man's voice, one I had not heard before. It was warm and loving, velvety and deep, and it was the kind of voice I had always wished for with Max. But then, the woman's name was Max, so if I pictured real hard, I could see us in that same position.

"Oh, is it an animal! I've always wanted a puppy!!!" This was another unknown voice, but this time it was the woman. She sounded choked with delight and love, but also a little lonely and sad underneath. Like a kitten whose mother has left it to go eat and it's not sure what's going on but will hope for the best.

"Yes, _they_ are animals, but be careful for they are wild and untamable. Hence the cages. But my feeling is that they will respond well to you, my angel. Now open." Ha! If that man thought we were going to be a present to some stuck up little prissy who thought of us as animals, then he could go fuck himself. End of story. Goodbye.

But it was when the girl ducked down to see us that we got the shock of our lives.

_A/N: Alls I can say is review please. And I was in a play as the Snow White Evil Queen and I kicked butt._


	3. Where We Stand

_A/N: Ahahahahahaha!!!! I'm back. With a damn nice trophy for having the best radio show for Jr. High, and I've been outta school since the 12th. So HA!!!!!!_

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, you own nothing, and we own nothing. Let's PARTAY!!!!! **

"Max?"

I blinked, startled as my gaze was drawn away from Fang and to Angel, my little baby. I knew she couldn't read my mind anymore – special training from Tristan had put walls up – but I still felt the need to focus on good thoughts to reassure her. Funny how a maternal instinct can disappear and return in a flash.

They were all there, my Flock, down to the very last of them. There was Gazzy and Angel, my two children. Nudge, my little sister and almost daughter. Iggy and Fang, the two who had hurt me the most. My happiness at seeing the last two evaporated, but it didn't mean I wanted to miss out on Angel and Gazzy and Nudge.

I opened the cage door and stepped into an almost homey room. They were certainly much better off than if they'd been at the School, but I could see the telltale signs of attempted escape.

Yet I ignored these obvious signs and ran to them and swept all of them up in my arms. Even Iggy and Fang, and I felt generous and good hearted whilst doing it.

"Ohhhhhhh, I've missed you guys so much." I sobbed into Angel's hair and it was their turn to hug me. Tears ran down the younger ones faces and Fang and Iggy moved to a corner and began to talk in low voices.

I disregarded it though, and pulled away. I moved to sit on one of the floor beds, fidgeting until my pale pink dress fell in just the right way. It was something I had become accustomed to, but it stopped my three little ones right in their tracks.

"Who are you and what have you done with Max?"

"I'm right here, sillies. I'm not going anywhere either. I finally have my little ones back." I opened my arms again, but only Angel crawled in. Gazzy was 12 after all, and Nudge an ancient 14. That was the age I had been when I had led them on the run, though I was glad to see she did not look as careworn as I had. They dragged another mat over and placed it across from me, Fang and Iggy coming out of their huddle to grace us with their presence.

I cuddled Angel closer and suddenly remembered something.

"Have you eaten yet?"

"No. They won't be feeding us for another few hours."

"Yes they will. Fang, please hand me that little phone that is behind you. Thank you, love."

I pushed the call button for the kitchen. "Yes?"

"Gina?"

"Yes, my lady. I am here. How can I be of service, my lady?"

Hearing my voice had certainly snapped her to attention. I would have to talk to the housekeeper, Mrs. Rochester, to make sure the servants were less lax. Jane was normally good about this sort of thing, but Edward's eyes must have been bothering him. I sighed, long and loud so she could hear me.

"This inattention to your post is most troubling, Gina. I would like you to send chocolate chip and blueberry muffins, waffles, and pancakes down with ice cold milk, a selection of cereals, sausages, bacon, and toast along with orange, cranberry, grape and mixed fruit juice, piping hot cocoa and ketchup, maple syrup, butter and whipped cream. Enough for six with my appetite. Oh, and some tea and coffee as well as my embroidery and mending. I would also appreciate it if a few bookcases, chess and checkerboards as well as any other amusements were sent down. And have a tailor come within the day to measure them in an all new wardrobe. Thank you Gina. I expect the food within a half an hour. That will be all."

"Of course, mistress."

I put the phone down and rolled my eyes at them. "Such lax behavior in servants is hardly appropriate, is it?"

They only gaped at me. I wondered at their intelligence for a moment before scolding myself. Just because Tristan was quicker than most didn't mean they had to be, and they were probably still tying to adjust as well.

"Max, what have they done to you?"

"Who is 'they', sweetheart?"

"The School, of course."

"Angel! We are _not _at the School! The School is a bad place full of modern day labs and tests. I am here because of Tristan. He was the man who brought you to me and is keeping us together!"

She crawled out of my lap and into Nudge's arms. I just looked at her, hurt and confused. This was a happy reunion. So far Fang had looked shocked and glared, Iggy had looked shocked and then impassive, Nudge, Angel and the Gasman had cried, looked hopeful, shocked and then a little…..indescribable, as they were unreadable.

Nudge's voice was oddly flat as she said, "Brought us to you?"

"Of course. You are a seventeenth birthday present!"

"A present?"

"Yes. Do I have to spell everything out for you?"

"Well I'm sorry our behavior is unsatisfactory for your company." They moved as a collective group to the opposite corner. I was saddened when I realized that I was no longer one of that group, and that I probably wouldn't be again the way things were going. I kept my composure though, and did what a lady must.

I stood and strode towards the door. When it opened I saw a few servants laden with trays and supervised by Gina. I spoke to her in a voice I knew they could hear. "Give them anything they ask for within the master's jurisdiction. Make sure they are fed well whenever they are hungry. Get them real beds – a suite perhaps. Make them at home here, but also have them get rid of their garish outside clothes. Keep them under the same rules as me. No outside the walls or in the master's study. But keep them far way from me, unless they wish to send an apology note. I don't like it when my things act up. Come to me if they are destructive or derogatory or try to escape. Thank you Gina, you are a good girl at heart. We'll let this one slide, hmm?"

I picked up my embroidery and went to the Roman garden, where I perched on a fountain edge and finished a panel of the tapestry which I was making for Tristan. Anger was a good source of concentration.

* * *

It was Max. My Max. Here with us. Now. My brain could hardly process it, when she stepped through the door and I was thrown into tailspin once again.

She had grown her beautiful hair out, and it curled down to her belly button. It was a fine, light blonde, bleached from days in the sun. She was slender, and a little taller than when I had last seen her. She was wearing a pale pink dress with billowy long sleeves that went all the way to the floor. It accentuated her porcelain skin, delicately flushed cheeks, rose red lips and beautiful, warm chocolate eyes. The dress had an empire waist that was lined in threads of gold that matched her gold shoes and the necklace and bracelet she was wearing. It also emphasized her lovely curves. Man, did she have nice breast. I mean…ummm….crap….nice…feet. Because, you know, Angel, I would never think of a woman in that way and….wow. They're _really nice. _Really, really, really nice and boy would I like to reach out and….Angel!!! Damn it!! Out of my mind!!!

Our gazes met, and my blood turned to liquid fire in my veins. She was here, in the here and now. I could barely believe it, even after some of those not G-rated thoughts I was having earlier.

But then she got on the phone with her servant, and we learned just how much Max had changed. She sounded haughty, imperious and snobby. Had she been brainwashed?

It was when she got off of the phone we knew the truth of our situation, and of the depth to which she had changed.

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